Supply chain customers and end-users have always relied on their I/T supplier companies to assist them by bringing the “Value” in Value Added Reseller. Over the years, VARs have led the way by providing services and support that their supply chain customers rely on to run their own businesses. However, as technology continues to evolve, VARs are working hard to keep up with creating new services and support that will help their customers adapt. Far beyond the standard RF site survey, leading VARs today have to be focused on a myriad of technologies and techniques in order to remain “Valuable”. Here are just a few of the areas where VARs are advancing the state of the art.

Loyal readers will already know this, but I wanted to share the press release that went out today, regarding Goya selecting Speakeasy as their voice-picking solution. You can view the full details here, and also check out the video below:

ReadWriteWeb recently highlighted Wavelink’s Infographic on the evolution of voice and speech recognition from the Brazen Head to Apple’s Siri. Take a closer look at the significant developments that paved the way for voice in the enterprise.

Now that we are half way through the year, I thought it’d be fun to throw out some predictions that I and some of my other colleagues see happening over the next six months and on.

First, expect to see continued consolidation in the MDM market, (which we have been lucky enough to participate in). This continues with companies combining their similar but disparate functionality to create more complete overall product offerings, e.g. LANDesk purchases Wavelink, and a few other notables in the fray. These consolidations along with further consolidations in the mobile device markets may muddy the MDM waters for some in the rugged space.

Under consolidation we have point 1.b. We are watching as hardware vendors consolidate their markets by purchasing other rugged vendors who also offer MDM products. As it turns out, they sometimes acquire companies with a preference for a management solution different from their own. Those who have been making a living with “special” functionality specific for their devices will end up with either some quick work to do to homogenize across their device platforms, or abandoning those special features until a later date for their acquired brand devices.

Next, I believe Microsoft Windows 8 will attempt to put a lock on the MDM market for Windows devices. Like the last time they tried this with SCMDM, they might find it difficult unless they can manage non-MS Windows devices including Android and iOS devices.

Finally, I expect to see more companies dip their toe in the water and try On Demand, cloud-based management. I am predicting they will find it to be a cost effective, refreshing change for the better. With that said, some of the more traditional in-premise wifi only devices will sadly never see the internet making this impossible. As long as there are wifi only devices, the need for “self-hosted” MDM systems will remain a requirement for management vendors.

These are only a few for you to think about, but I’d love to hear any predictions you have for the next 12-18 months! Post them in the comments below and let’s talk about them!

Historically many companies have been put off by voice directed applications from a financial perspective, but also take a “wait and see” approach; does it really yield ROI? This past year alone the momentum building for voice directed applications in the warehouse really can’t be denied. In a November/December 2011 study by the Aberdeen Group 90% of survey respondents were currently looking at voice software, and of those 76% were strongly considering using a different hardware manufacturer as opposed to the traditional voice hardware and software offerings. But does a lower cost option mean that they are less likely to get all the bells and whistles? Could it be that they can even expect more?

I would say yes, of course! Am I bias? Of course, but it isn’t without merit. Wavelink Speakeasy is leading the charge against the traditional voice options. Voice options, that let’s be honest, require you purchase all new hardware and then require further investment in changes to your back-end WMS systems, extensive training, servers, modification or replacement of the host application etc. It’s exhausting to have to think about the implementation cycle for something like this and then how long it would take to see a significant ROI. Who has the time?

With Wavelink Speakeasy we just keep it simple. We stand behind our voice in 30-days or less implementation and not only that, but you get to keep all of the hardware you’ve already invested heavily into, you don’t need additional servers, you can work with your existing WMS, no heavy network traffic, and the huge benefit of multi-modal support that Speakeasy provides. Why do you care about multi-modal support? Voice enabled applications have been proven to deliver improved data accuracy in many applications, but there are many situations when the combination of voice and barcode scanning is most accurate. For example, location verification is more accurate when scanned rather than using spoken check digits. The input of long numbers, such as serial numbers, is much more accurately scanned than spoken. Wavelink’s solution allows for multiple input sources such as scanning, voice and RFID, as well as keyboard entry, which allows for the best method to be utilized.

Still not convinced? Reach out – there’s nothing we like better than showing off. Send in your information in the “Ask the Advisor” box off to the left.

Every now and then, we have the opportunity to tell new customers and/or Partners about what it means to provide solutions for the entire mobile ecosystem, and it struck me that it might make a great topic for a blog post.

When you look at our solutions, the best way to visualize the “how do they all work together?” question is to envision an enterprise within the four walls. Let’s say that the enterprise is divided into the following “sections”, all of which come with their own needs and requirements.

In every Warehouse, applications are being run for a variety of tasks. This is where we begin our circle of mobile ecosystem solutions, via Studio and TE which allow organizations to deliver the aforementioned applications to mobile assets, such as handheld computers. From there, it’s possible that some of those applications are web-based, and therefore require an Industrial Browser or Velocity to render and properly run them. For further productivity, many companies are now looking to voice-enable these very same applications, which as you’ve seen in our Goya Foods video, our Speakeasy product does quite well.

We are excited to share our Speakeasy and Goya Foods video case study. Luis and his team are doing amazing things with their applications, and this video has some excellent insight into the ways voice-enabling their Manhattan Associates WMS has really improved operations. Take a peek and let us know what you think!

The Voice market is changing. The traditional, legacy, providers are seeing the market expand and enterprises are finding that adding voice to their web applications no longer requires being held “hostage.” With long implementation cycles, costly brand-new hardware and extensive training, enterprises are shelling out big money to add Voice. This begs the question; when does ROI actually kick in? Isn’t Voice supposed to streamline operations, therefore saving you money?

It isn’t to say that these traditional providers don’t eventually save organizations money, but with tight budgets and staff often wearing multiple hats it is even more important for enterprises to see an early return, not only on the financial side, but also on the implementation side.

At our “Voice in 30 Days!” webinar, we talked about many of these topics, and how Speakeasy answers these challenges. For enterprises adding Voice just got a whole lot simpler.

Don’t have the resources or time to dedicate to a Speakeasy implementation? At the webinar, we announced the new Speakeasy Professional Services team that is available to get voice applications up and running as fast as possible. Our highly qualified group of field implementation engineers serves as an extension to your organization by ensuring that your specific objectives are met and that Speakeasy is deployed correctly. Additionally, with close relationships with strategic WMS providers and support for enterprise applications such as SAP and Oracle mean customers who were once limited to voice options, now – so to say – have a voice! We’d love to hear your voice success stories in the comments below!

Imagine arriving at the local insta-care facility and after your check-in, you step up to the scale for your routine weigh-in. However, this time instead of the local nurse checking your weight, it’s automatically said out-loud by a small computer. Come to think of it, maybe that’s a bad example… turns out most probably don’t want their weight being open to public ears!

Yet, despite that bad example, it’s easy to see areas in the healthcare mobile ecosystem where voice-enabling tasks could be a huge benefit. Going back to the above, imagine language barriers that make new patient check-in’s difficult. Now imagine if that process could be voice-enabled, by having basic check-in questions spoken to the patient in his or her language. Suddenly, the process is much quicker, and wait times are drastically reduced. The concept is really no different than that of providing broad language support for voice picking applications in the warehouse.

Bottom line is this: voice technology is growing in the healthcare world, just as it has in retail, manufacturing, transportation, and so in. In fact, a recent TMCnet article about Nuance’s Mobile Clinician Voice Challenge states:

Physician adoption of mobile healthcare devices is expected to reach up to 85 percent over the current year. Increasing the need for user-friendly healthcare applications that enhance medical professionals ability to track mobile workflow and overall provide effective patient care digitally.

85%. That’s a big jump. So the next time your at your local physician, insta-care, or emergency room, take a look around – what aspects of the healthcare mobile ecosystem do you see that could be voice-enabled?

As you saw (click here for the pictures), the Wavelink AsiaPac team attended and sponsored the Honeywell AsiaPac and China shows on Feb 28-29, and Mar 1-2 respectively in Hangzhou China near Shanghai.

The conferences were to bring together Honeywell’s reseller and partners to learn Honeywell’s plans for 2012 and beyond. Products, strategies, and guidance on how to maximize your opportunities were provided in the areas of mobile computers and scanners. Participants were rotated through sessions specializing on field mobility, retail, and warehousing with each touching on how Honeywell specializes in each area, and how participants can again optimize their participation in these market segments.